You
are now on board one of the most versatile ships
in the United States Navy. The USS
SYLVANIA(AFS-2) is the second Combat Stores Ship
of the Mars Class to be built. The most advanced
and effective cargo handling, transfer and
engineering equipment has been incorporated into
this ship. With her crew of highly
dedicated professionals, SYLVANIA is capable of
sustaining the most efficient underway
replenishment missions in the world to this
date. This ship is truly representative of
the modem Navy. It is with great pleasure and
pride that the crew of the "Vigilant
Provider" welcomes you aboard. We hope your
tour will be informative, enjoyable and
inspiring.

COMMAND
HISTORY

USS
SYLVANIA was built by the National Steel and
Shipbuilding Company of San Diego, California,
and was commissioned 11 July 1964 in Long Beach,
California. USS SYLVANIA was named for
communities in Georgia and Ohio. From 25 April
1965 until 30 September 1969, USS SYLVANIA was
homeported in Naples, Italy, and assigned to the
SIXTH Fleet. The ship was tasked with regular
monthly resupply missions in the Mediterranean.
Since changing its homeport to Norfolk, USS
SYLVANIA has deployed to the Mediterranean
numerous times. In September 1976, returning
from a routine deployment, USS SYLVANIA had the
honor of transporting the world famous King Tut
Exhibit to America for the New York Metropolitan
Museum.

USS
SYLVANIA has earned numerous awards and
commendations, including the following
citations: three awards of the Battle Efficiency
"E", the Navy Unit Commendation for
Desert Storm, the Navy Expeditionary Medal for
her participation in Sixth Fleet peacekeeping
efforts in Lebanon in 1983, two awards of the
National Defense Service
Medal, and two Meritorious Unit Commendations.
USS SYLVANIA replenished three aircraft carrier
battle groups in the Red Sea during Operation
Desert Storm. She set replenishment records for
the AFS class ship; including 177 customers
served, 19,384 pallets transferred (20,500 tons
of supplies) and 53,000 supply requisitions
processed. SYLVANIA completed an 86-day
Mediterranean Deployment on 15 June 1992. She
continued the record setting pace of Desert
Storm by resupplying 72 ships during her 60 days
on-station with the Sixth Fleet. Most recently,
SYLVANIA deployed to Miami, Florida in support
of Hurricane Andrew relief operations. The
SYLVANIA/HC-8, Det 3 Team delivered more than 4
million pounds of food and relief supplies.

To
keep up with the increasing improvements and
needs of today's fast naval task forces, the
Navy has expanded the capabilities of its
movable logistic support forces to include the
use of helicopters in vertical replenishment (VERTREP)
as a normal resupply method. This concept of
resupply of ships at sea, although not entirely
new, has in the past been limited to the use of
helicopters normally carried by aircraft
carriers and other large ships. Now it has been
incorporated with the conventional methods of
alongside cargo transfer from supply ships to
speed up the underway operation. Playing an
important role in the story of vertical
replenishment is the UH-46A. One of the first
tests of the UH46A's capabilities in
ship-to-ship transfer was made when
surface-to-air missiles were transferred during
exercises at sea off Norfolk, Va., in November
1964. With a cruising speed of 150 mph and a
range of 300 miles, the UH-46A helicopter can
carry out the major resupply of all types of
ships by VERTREP. The ships are
required to come alongside only if the transfer
of fuel oil is necessary. A month after the
Norfolk exercise, in December 1964, two UH-46A
Sea Knight helicopters were placed aboard the
new combat stores ship. USS Mars (AFS
1). This can be marked as the date when
helicopters designed for full-scale vertical
replenishment operations were activated in the
U. S. Seventh Fleet. Ten months later two UH-46A
helicopters of Helicopter Combat Support
Squadron One, Detachment 49, began operating
aboard the Navy's first fast combat support ship
USS Sacramento (AOE 1). Both ships, units of the
Pacific Service Force, are deployed in the
western Pacific, operating in support of the
Seventh Fleet. The medium utility, twin-turbine
helicopters are identical to the CH-46A medium
assault helicopters used by the Marine Corps for
vertical envelopment assault operations. The
primary aim of the Navy's new vertical
replenishment program is to reduce alongside
underway replenishment time, thus allowing
combatant ships to remain for longer periods of
time in their regular position in the task force
formation, ready for action. This has been
substantially demonstrated through the
multi-product delivery capability of Sacramento,
a combination Fleet boiler, ammunition and
provisions ship, while serving as flagship of
the Mobile Logistic Support Group Commander (CTG
73.5) during recent operations in the South
China Sea. While ships are alongside,
Sacramento's two helicopters can continue to
relay provisions and ammunition to them. The
VERTREP complements the transfer of ammunition
by highline and reduces the over-ail time
alongside, allowing the ship more time for
tactical maneuvers. In most instances a VERTREP
trip to a carrier alongside Sacramento can be
completed in one to two hours.
An article from ALL HANDS.